Small home, large family – How to make them work together

Many seem to think that a small home and a large family are incompatible with real-life circumstances. But as many families across the world have proved, you can survive in a similar environment and stay sane. You don’t need a penthouse to live a happy, fulfilling, and stress-free life, and this is great news, since, like most middle-class Americans, you can’t afford something like this. You only have to find suitable solutions to make everything work accordingly to your lifestyle. And if you are clueless, we have some suggestions for you.

Sharing is caring aka. Share the rooms

Obviously, small homes rarely have the necessary number of rooms to accommodate a growing family. But nonetheless, you must know that you don’t have to have a separate room for each member of your family – for now. Sharing a room is incredibly common in other areas of the world, and in the case of small children, this seems to be a highly appropriate solution, at least until they grow a little. This is a comfortable solution for your children, and it’s not only comfortable, but it will also help them create fond memories with each other for the future. Growing up sharing your room with your siblings can bring so many good parts, that will help your children grow into more sociable and more open individuals. Also, it will help your family save some generous amounts of money on the long run. If you fear that there won’t be too much space left in a room if you accommodate more children in it, consider investing in a couple of bunk beds and they will have plenty of space for a learning and play corner as well!

Use hideaway tables

Tables and chairs eat the most of the available space, especially in rather small homes. Since you find yourself in a similar situation, make sure to consider investing in some stackable chairs and a hideaway table. This will satisfy the need for space when the family is gathering around, while it will provide a perfect solution for those times in which you need more space to freely move around your home. Ikea has some incredible solutions in terms of similar chairs and tables, and you will most certainly appreciate this witty innovation when the time comes. A dining table that can be folded in various ways in order to save space, a coffee table that hides under your TV console, these are amazing solutions for large families living in small homes.

A couch is more than enough

Regardless of the number of members your family has, you can save plenty of space by investing in a single couch. Not everybody will fit on it, but those not sitting on the couch can always take out those stackable or pliable chairs that your family has and make themselves comfortable. If you are daring enough, invest in a coffee table that doubles as a bench, invest in several sitting pillows and your guests will feel more than comfortable. Remember that you don’t have to give up having guests only because your couch is small. There are alternative solutions which work amazingly.

Self-storage units are lifesavers

Yes, you lack the necessary storage space for in-house seasonal rotation of your belongings, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t adopt this strategy. Simply rent a self-storage unit. Make sure that you pay attention to the specifics of those things that you plan to store there and choose a suitable solution for your particular case. Furniture requires certain conditions from such establishments, while clothing items, ask for completely different storage conditions. Regardless, you will definitely end up having more in-house space and you can even consider the daring option of turning your garage into an additional room, when needed. Your garage doesn’t have to host unnecessary belongings. It has such a great potential!

Hang things

In small homes, you most certainly have to find a way to store your belongings vertically, and in most of the cases, this means that you have to hang them. Shelves and hooks are your best friends if space is not that generous, but these small adjustments will make it possible to comfortably live as a large family in a modest home.

Not all families have laundry rooms

The typical American family does have a laundry room, but this is not the case of most families in Europe, especially those living in apartment blocks. They do have a washing machine, and a clothing rack, but dryers and elaborated laundry rooms are somethings unknown to them. And they live comfortably in their homes. You can skip the luxury of such a room, and adopt the European approach to doing the laundry.

These are some smart tips that will help you and your large family live a happy and comfortable life in your small house.